Butterflies to take center stage at center's Earth Day event

Butterflies will be the star attractions at this year's free Earth Day festivities April 28 at West Boca's Daggerwing Nature Center, 11200 Park Access Road. That is, if you don't count the birds of prey, the snake and turtle or the naming contest for the new Eastern screech owl.

"All the plants are host plants for caterpillars, or nectar plants for the adults. Right now the garden is going nuts with zebra butterflies, so I'm hoping they'll still be decent for Earth Day," said Kelli Dorschel, manager of the center in South County Regional Park. "We usually get the zebras year-round, and they show up in the greatest numbers when the weather gets warmer."

The center's butterfly garden out front was certified by the Florida Federation of Garden Clubs in 2009. "We try to replenish what the caterpillars eat down, and the plants are accustomed to that and grow back," Dorschel said.

This will be the eighth year for Pretend Productions' Sally Leyenberger, who comes dressed in the appropriate costumes and armed with milkweed seed and the arch-enemy aphids.

"A caterpillar turns into a butterfly munching and crunching, and I come dressed as a monarch underneath the caterpillar costume," Leyenberger said. "The costume has silk-screened monarch wings and I get a 'wow!'

"We go through a metamorphosis with puppets, and it teaches the children the changes they go through and we have packages of milkweed seed. They get a sheet of elementary butterfly gardening.

"When they see the caterpillar climbing around and chewing on the milkweed, it's remarkable."

Leyenberger's storytelling will be followed by the release of 3,000 lady bugs, which is no coincidence. "They eat aphids," Dorschel said. "We put them into little containers and the kids dump them in the garden. It's natural pest control. Certified gardens are not allowed to use pesticides."

Among the other activities are reptiles and birds of prey shows, and boardwalk tours with a guide. "There's the potential to see turtles, birds and fish, maybe an alligator or two out on the lake," Dorschel said. "This is a free event and show up early: The first 100 kids get a free goodie bag with a coloring book, stickers, notepads and toys."

Sue Mochtak-Heller, the art teacher West Boca's Coral Sunset Elementary School, wants visitors to notice the 30 works of art by her students in the center's main gallery and book nook. They'll be on display during Earth Day. "The kindergartners did bird paintings, and first- and second-graders did collages of animals and birds in the style of Eric Carle," of "The Very Hungry Caterpillar" fame, she said. The older students did oil pastels.

"We got a new owl two weeks ago, and on Earth Day people can submit a name to get in the running," Dorschel said.